Disclaimer etc. in Prologue...


Menage a trois
By DanaK35

PART TWO


1 month later
FBI Headquarters
06:45 p.m.

Dana Scully sat at her desk across from her partner and regarded him evenly wondering when 
things between them had gotten so complicated and wrong. It seemed to her that over the 
course of the last weeks their relationship had deteriorated and where there had once been 
trust, understanding, even love, there was only aggravation now. 

She and Mulder hadn't spoken about that one night, since coming back from Alabama and 
rushing to Skinner's side. Their own issues seemed to fade in the light of their former superior' s 
condition. Scully still shivered at the thought of his drawn, pale face as his eyes had pleaded 
with her to help him. The hours she had spent hours at his side, when he fell into a coma, 
praying for his life. 

The illness had gone into remission as quickly as it had appeared and Skinner had surprised 
them by prohibiting Mulder from following up on the case. He had seemed under a spell and 
when Scully asked him for his reasons and had only thanked her for being at his side, then 
dismissed her curtly. She had let the subject go with regret.

Scully had expected to talk about what had happened between her and Mulder, once that 
immediate crisis had been over, but he had avoided her as much as he could. 

They hardly spoke now outside of work. They had gone back to being colleagues without ever 
mentioning that particular night again. Colleagues, not friends, let alone lovers.

"I just don't have the strength for this ... anymore..." Scully mumbled to herself and trying to 
concentrate on the computer in front of her. 

Mulder had taken out someone he had met god-only-knows-where twice this week already, 
once to lunch and to dinner the night before. It bothered her more than she admitted and 
Scully felt depression settle heavily on her. The shrill ring of the phone between their desks 
made her jump, interrupting her thoughts.

When she extended her hand to pick it up, Mulder snatched up the receiver and gave her 
wicked grin. "Mulder!" he bellowed but then his face lit up "Sure, that would be 
great...when?...half an hour...sure, I'll be there!" He replaced the receiver and got up, stacking 
his papers in a folder. 

"What's going on?" Scully raised one eyebrow questioningly. 

"I am leaving...I've had enough for today!" He put on his jacket and added "AND I have a date!" 

Before she could reply he was gone, leaving her somewhat dumbfounded, with a pile of papers. 
'Damn him!' Scully muttered under her breath and got up to get herself another cup of coffee. 
She returned to her desk and started working on that damned report.

"It's Friday and I, Dana Scully, have nothing better to do than typing up Mulder's reports!" she 
said loudly to herself. "And the sad truth is I DON'T have anything better to do... ." and even 
though she knew she should just leave his stuff on his desk for him to deal with, she wrote up 
his part of the final case report and the expenses, because she just couldn't see him getting his 
ass chewed off time and again. 

She wondered briefly whether his date was that same woman yet again, but then banned the 
thought from her mind. "As if I cared!" she mumbled and sipped her coffee. But she did care. 
She still cared. OK, if sleeping together had been a mistake, fine, but it shouldn't be like this. 
They were adults; they should be able to put it behind them. She missed the friendship, the 
easy laughs, the heated arguments. She missed Mulder. The old Mulder.

***************

Walter Skinner watched her mumble to herself, pick up her cup and take a sip of what looked 
like coffee and bend down over her laptop once more. He had just gotten himself another cup 
when he had spotted her sitting in the cubicle she shared with Mulder.

Most of the other Agents in the bullpen had already left for the weekend and he wondered just 
why Dana Scully sat there typing rapidly on her computer when everyone else was obviously 
enjoying the beginning of the weekend!

Now she was glancing at her watch and shaking her head at noticing the time. When she took 
off her glasses, closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair exhaustedly, Skinner felt oddly 
connected with her. 

How many times had he sat there, alone in the darkened office, writing up reports until he 
couldn't keep his eyes open any longer, either because he was under pressure to get them 
signed off or because he was too afraid to go home to the loneliness of an empty apartment on 
a Friday night? 

She had been torturing his mind for weeks. Ever since that one chaste kiss in the elevator, that 
one meaningless dinner in Bermuda. Like it would ever happen again. 

But then he had been rushed to the hospital and he had given her name as next of kin. When 
he had stood on the edge to his death, when the pain had become almost too much to bear, 
when letting go had been tempting, he had felt her presence, willing him to fight. She had been 
his guardian angel. 

Sighing he pushed himself away from the wall and walked casually over to her desk just in time 
to hear her mutter "...and this is why it would never work, this..." 

"Agent Scully?" Skinner asked quietly and his deep voice startled her, causing her to drop her 
glasses. He bent down to pick them up. "Sorry, I didn't want to scare you" he said 
apologetically when he handed her the silver frames. 

"I was just surprised...what are you still doing here?" she ran a hand through her hair and 
fidgeted with some papers. 

His presence made her nervous. "I could ask you the same thing, it's Friday!" 

She waved it off "...it's nothing, just a lot of work." 

Skinner sat down on the edge of her desk and gestured towards Mulder's desk. "Doesn't Agent 
Mulder have any reports to write?" 

Scully looked down at her hands. He sensed her reluctance to talk behind her partner's back, 
because he immediately changed the subject. 

He took a deep breath. It was now or never. "Have you had dinner?" the question startled her 
but she remembered that the last thing she had eaten today had been a salad in the FBI 
cafeteria. And she remembered his quiet presence at the last dinner they'd shared.

"Actually, no, I haven't" 

"Neither have I...care to join me? There is this nice Italian place just around the corner..." his 
voice trailed off and he looked at her expectantly. 

His invitation confused her and she looked at him suspiciously, but then she thought 'WHY not?' 

"Why not..." she said out loud and switched off her computer. "What a nice idea!"

Scully got up and Skinner held up her suit jacket for her to slip in. "Let me just get my coat..." 
he said and disappeared in the direction of his office. 

She smiled at his gentlemanly manner towards her and had to admit that she was flattered. It 
had been a long time since anyone had behaved gentlemanly towards her, especially someone 
as interesting and attractive as Walter Skinner. He wasn't their superior officer anymore...and 
Mulder? ...Mulder was probably enjoying the company of a gorgeous blonde right now, no doubt 
about that, while she sat in their office, working...no more of that, Scully decided and smiled up 
at Skinner who had returned, coat in hand. He gently placed on hand on her elbow, when they 
exited the building.

The small Italian restaurant was located just two blocks away and had the melodious name "La 
Fontana". The owner greeted Skinner like a regular and led them to a table for two by the 
window, overlooking the inner courtyard that was illuminated by countless lights and had a 
fountain in it's center. 

The dining room was decorated with fake wines, candles in Chianti bottles and marble statues 
and the tables were set with red-checkered cloths and a single rose. All in all it looked very 
cliché, but Scully liked it nevertheless. The smell of olive oil and garlic mixed with the scent of 
fresh herbs and cigarette smoke gave the place a warm and homely feel to it. 

"The usual, Mr. Skinner?" 

"Yes, I'd like a Pellegrino and a Barolo and, for you?" 

"The same, please..." Scully nodded and settled back in her chair. "You obviously come here 
often..." 

"It used to be our favorite place, Sharon's and mine, whenever she was in the city, she would 
pick me up at the office and coax me into taking her for lunch or dinner...we always ended up 
here... ." 

His expression was sorrowful and Scully felt the overwhelming need to cover his hand with her 
own. Instead she ran it through her hair and asked, "You still miss her?"

"Yes, I do, we'd been together since our senior year in high-school...." His voice trailed off 
when the wine was served and after glancing at the menu, Skinner ordered for both of them, 
reassuring Scully that the food would be great, then he continued.

"When she died after the accident, it was like someone had ripped my heart right out...even 
though we had been separated for months. And now...now it is like a dull ache in my heart 
where she once was...." He smiled sadly and cast down his eyes, suddenly afraid to have 
burdened her with his sorrow. 

Scully smiled back and nodded impressed by how much he cared. "I know...," she said. She, 
too, had lost people she loved and it seemed that she had just lost her dearest friend in a time 
where she desperately needed him. 

Skinner took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose with his characteristic gesture 
and looked up at her again, noticing her flaming hair in the candle light and the way it reflected 
in her eyes. How Mulder could constantly push her away was beside him... 

"I guess it's part of the letting go" he said out loud and poured them both more wine, looking at 
her with those intense chocolate eyes, that caused a shiver to run down her spine. Why did he 
have to be so damned good-looking, as if Mulder wasn't enough of a complication in her life 
already? 

Their food arrived and as he had promised it was delicious. During dinner they moved to lighter 
conversation covering all kinds of topics from recent theater productions to politics and 
classical music. 

They enjoyed each other's company and didn't even realize how late it had gotten until 
Miquele, the owner, politely handed Skinner the check with an apologetic glance at his watch. 
Only then did they notice that it was already after midnight and Skinner handed Miquele his 
credit card.

"I guess we lost track of time...," he said, picking up Scully's coat. 

She smiled at him as she shrugged into the sleeves, taking her purse "I really enjoyed it" she 
answered.

The night was icy and clear and Scully welcomed the cold air after all the food and wine.

"I don't think I need to eat again for a week." She said, laughing and taking his arm impulsively. 

They reached the Hoover building and Skinner walked her to her car. She unlocked the door and 
put her belongings on the passenger seat, then she turned back to him, looking up. "Thank you 
for a wonderful evening...I can't even remember when I last had such a nice Friday night." 'Sad 
truth, Dana!' 

"It was my pleasure, Agent Scully" 

She had to grin at his formality. "I guess we can do without the titles for now" she said, raising 
one eyebrow. 

He smiled his lopsided smile and took her hand, placing a soft kiss on top of it. "I guess we can, 
Scully" he replied still holding her hand, intently looking at her.

For endless seconds she stared right back, almost losing herself into the chocolate depths of 
his eyes. 'Don't make it more complicated' an inner voice told her and she forced herself to turn 
away and get into the car. 

He seemed disappointed and after a rather hasty "Good night", he walked off. 

Scully was about to close the door when she spontaneously called after him "Skinner? How 
about coffee? Sunday afternoon?" 

His face lit up like that of a little boy on Christmas and he nodded "I'll call you..." and sauntered 
off.


**********************************************


Fox Mulder opened his apartment door and made an inviting gesture. "Please, come in" he said 
to the attractive brunette in his company.

"Oh, Mulder you can be so damned formal at times" she said breathily and entered, swinging her 
hips.

Mulder had met Rachel Williams at a party given by one of the guys he played basketball with. 
He seldom attended gatherings like that but this time he had said yes, when Brian invited him, 
one of the reasons being that he had been invited and had denied several times already, but 
the main reason being Scully and their deteriorating relationship. "I don't need her!" he had 
stubbornly thought when he made the decision to attend. 

The evening had turned out to be fun and he had met Rachel, a gorgeous brunette who worked 
as anchorwoman for a local TV station. She was funny, intelligent and obviously very taken by 
him. Mulder enjoyed her company immensely, but was unsure as to where this was going. 
Rachel had made her intentions pretty clear and had let him know in no uncertain terms that 
she expected more of him than the occasional dinner or lunch. 

Now she strolled through his apartment, leafing casually through papers and checking out the 
CD's that lay scattered around the stereo. She chose one and soon the soothing voice of 
sound Sinéad Lohan filled the apartment. 

She sat down on the couch and indicated the space beside her "Why don't you come and sit 
down?" 

Mulder ran his hand through his hair and shed his leather jacket. He sat down beside her and 
put one arm casually on the back of the couch.

"I really enjoyed this evening," she said, leaning closer so that he could smell her perfume. 

"So did I, Rachel, what made you call again, after I had stood you up the last time?" 

She laughed quietly and ran one hand down his cheek, pausing to touch his bottom lip with her 
index finger. "Oh, I figured I'd give you another chance, Fox Mulder, after all you are worth it..." 
and then she bent forward to kiss him. 



Mulder was shocked and intrigued at the same time. Her lips were firm and warm, her kiss 
sensual. He felt himself relax and return her kiss, wrapping his arms around her and drawing her 
closer. When the phone rang, Mulder didn't care...the answering machine would get it...


******************************


"This is Fox Mulder, I'm not home, leave a ...." Scully slammed down the phone. 

Obviously Mulder's evening was going great. She had come home after her dinner with Skinner 
and had seen the light blinking on her answering machine. 

It had been Mulder "Ah, Scully, I don't know if you are home...I just wanted to 
say...well...thanks, I know you probably have been finishing that report... thanks!"

He'd hung up then and she had been happy that he had called and said thanks. But then her 
anger came back - he obviously did take her for granted! He had been absolutely sure she 
would write that report. '...You get a biscuit, Scully'. This had to end. She couldn't go on like 
this. He was out doing god-knows-what and she sat there and obediently typed up reports, 
waiting for him to notice her. She knew she had gotten herself into this mess. She pulled out 
the papers that had been on her desk for a month now. She didn't have the strength to argue 
anymore. 

"Fuck him!" she told herself as she slipped into bed. 


End part two